DAYS 175 & 176 - Birthplace of the Titanic

Sept 10 & 11 - Scotland to Ireland
Early start and we were happy that Graeme drove us to the bus stop (would have been a 45 min. walk), so we could catch it to go on our early flight to Belfast.  Rich took some good photos of our flight as it was a very scenic one.

Taking off on a cloudy, dismal day in Inverness, Scotland.

The plane was not very crowded.

 It was beautiful looking at the scenery below, peeking through the clouds.

See the wind generators down below - there are many of them.

A glimpse of Ireland through the window.

Looks like it's going to be a sunny day!

The Irish use every bit of land for something, don't they?

Our hosts, Caroline and Fergal were outside of Belfast, about 20 minutes on the train. We were so grateful that she picked us up from the airport.  Caroline was very friendly and I knew right away we had picked a wonderful couch-surfing host. She took us to their home and after settling in, she had to go back to work.  I really wanted to see the Titanic Museum, which was right on her way, so Rich stayed at her home and I spent the afternoon visiting the place where the Titanic was born.  I was in HEAVEN!

I thought the design of the museum was just fantastic - very modern and innovative!

On April 14, 1912, the luxury liner RMS Titanic, just four days into her maiden voyage from Southampton to New York City, struck an iceberg and sank with the loss of 1,514 lives. At the time, the massive, state-of-the-art ship was the largest vessel afloat and considered by many to be "virtually unsinkable." Built in Belfast, Northern Ireland , the ill-fated Titanic has been a source of fascination for a century.  In 2005, plans were announced to build a museum dedicated to Titanic to attract tourists to the area, with the aim of completing it by 2012 to mark the centenary of Titanic's maiden voyage.
 
Titanic Belfast is a visitor attraction and a monument to Belfast's maritime heritage on the site of the former Harland & Wolff shipyard in the city's Titanic Quarter. The decline of shipbuilding in Belfast left much of the area derelict. Most of the disused structures on the island were demolished.  The museum tells the stories of the ill-fated RMS Titanic, which sank on her maiden voyage in 1912, and her sister ships RMS Olympic and HMHS Britannic.

"The angular construction on the edge of the docks appears as a glittering shard of innovative design; an external facade clad with several thousand three-dimensional aluminum plates, of which two thousand are unique in size and shape, creating a startling textured effect. The four corners of the building represent the Titanic's bow, jutting into the sky, at the same height as the original ship, giving you a feel for the true scale of the ocean liner. On an alternative take on the design, you could imagine the building to represent a looming iceberg, symbolic of nature's dominance over the Titanic’s steel and engineering."  (Huffington Post)

Harland & Wolff Cranes built in the early 1970's- they were HUGE!

  Samson and Goliath are the twin ship building cranes in this northern Ireland city. The cranes, which were named after the biblical figures Samson and Goliath, dominate the Belfast skyline and are landmark structures of the city.  Each crane has a span of 140 metres (459 ft) and can lift loads of up to 840 tons to a height of 70 metres (230 ft), making a combined lifting capacity of over 1,600 tons, one of the largest in the world.  Harland and Wolff were still one of the world’s great shipbuilders at the time and the building of the two cranes, during a difficult period for shipbuilding in Belfast, was seen as a sign of faith in the future.

2009 - Plaque to commemorate 100 years of beginning of Titanic building

The construction of the building cost $120 million with an additional $40 million spent on pre-planning and public realm enhancements. The foundations to the building involved one of the country's largest-ever concrete pours with 4,200 cubic metres (150,000 cu ft) of concrete delivered by 700 concrete lorries in 24 hours.

Whoah!  That must have been quite the sight seeing it go up!
 Nearly 1 million visitors came the first year -twice as many as expected.

  Inside the Museum, I had a GREAT time and it was not very crowded.  YEAH!

 After going through some exhibits, we went on a little ride which gave a sample of how the ship was built.  IT WAS SO VERY INTERESTING.  I wish you could tell how cool it was, but the pictures just don't do it justice.

 There were some windows with miniature rooms re-built just like the Titanic.

The replica Grand Staircase is made from red oak

                                

A typical bedroom - probably in 2nd class.

4 pianos on board - 3 in 1st class, 2 in 2nd class, 1 in 3rd class.

 I found this fact so interesting.  There were four pianos on board, provided by Steinway & Sons.  As we traveled throughout Europe, we found that pianos could not even be given away.  No one wants one.  #1 -They don't have room for it in their small apartments and flats.  #2 - People are just not learning how to play the piano any more.  They choose to play on their i-pods, blackberries, i-pads, gadgets, phones, i-phones, and whatever else you call them now.  CRAZY!!

BOOKS about the Titanic.

MOVIES about the Titanic.

 POEMS and SONGS about the Titanic.

This was right where she sailed out of...just knock out the boardwalk.

Here is where Titanic first touched the water.  The Slipways have since been restored and now play host to a variety of open air concerts and events.

This is how big she was.  The large posts are as high and the distance across is how wide.

Throughout the museum, there is deep respect for the hundreds who lost their lives - the exhibition ends with description of how the bodies were recovered, where they were buried, what White Star's actions were after the disaster, how relatives of the deceased reacted back home, and the many stories of the survivors.

Many have laid claim to the ship's famous history - Southampton and Queenstown (known as Cobh) were her last stops before setting off on her doomed maiden voyage, New York was her destination and Halifax was where some of the deceased were laid to rest - but Belfast deserves international acknowledgement for creating the world’s most famous ship.

I found my way to the train station and back to Caroline and Fergal's apartment.(after getting lost, but what's new?)

Of course I wandered a bit down the streets trying to find the correct place where they lived.

Finally back and up the stairs I go to our bedroom.

It was a cool old dwelling with an ornate staircase.

We had our own beautiful bathroom.

...and spacious loft-like bedroom with a great view!

This is looking out their back yard from our 3rd story bedroom.

 Fergal (Fergie) was out of town the first two days we were there, and Caroline worked all day, so Rich and I cooked the meals while we were there.

A stew with meatballs tasted great after a long day!

An Irish red-head, Caroline, was very appreciative.

She offered some special chocolates after dinner.

 Rich and I had fun taking many pictures of the view out our window in different lights over the next couple of days.  It was hard to choose just one, so you decide which one you like best.  The light is different.  You'll see one with a jet coming in for a landing, a big ferry, and a close up of the church.  ENJOY!

 One last look at the Titanic Belfast Museum when it was celebrated with its opening in 2012 with beautiful fireworks.  All of those who passed on from this terrible incident were probably there in spirit.

Titanic Belfast is gorgeous at night, especially with the opening fireworks celebration in 2012.